Southern Lebanon Braces for Upcoming Peace Talks With Israel

Summary

Podcast Summary: Here's the Scoop – "Southern Lebanon Braces for Upcoming Peace Talks With Israel"

NBC News | Hosted by Christine Romans (filling in for Yasmin Vossoughian)
Date: April 22, 2026

Main Theme

This episode centers on the high-stakes situation in southern Lebanon as residents brace for rare, direct peace talks between Lebanon and Israel in Washington, D.C. The discussion vividly explores the human impact of the ongoing conflict, the geopolitical complexities underlying the negotiations, and the evolving roles of Hezbollah, Iran, and the Lebanese government. Expert on-the-ground reporting provides harrowing insight into civilians’ lives, the motivations behind each side’s demands, and what’s at stake in potential normalization between historic adversaries.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Opening Context: The Human Cost of War

• Host Christine Romans introduces the episode by noting the historical significance of the (second-ever) peace talks and the absence of Hezbollah from the negotiating table.
• Focus is placed on the direct impacts on the people of southern Lebanon who continue to face violence and displacement despite a ceasefire.

Field Report from Southern Lebanon

The Journey South (02:07–04:39)

• Yasmin Vossoughian becomes the first NBC News reporter in southern Lebanon since the war began, describing a perilous trip from Beirut through distinctly Hezbollah-influenced areas.
• Observations of major destruction—especially the Qassimiyeh (Qasimiyyeh) Bridge, a vital supply artery bombed by Israel—and increasing Hezbollah and Iranian iconography as she nears Tyre, a Hezbollah stronghold.
• Grieves the lack of choice for many civilians in the area despite the area's militant reputation:

  "Not everybody in Tyre...is a believer in the ideology of Hezbollah. It just happens to be a Hezbollah stronghold. There are a lot of civilians there. There are a lot of people that just want to live in peace." (Yasmin, 04:20)

Civilian Stories: Loss and Resilience

Fadel’s Story (04:50–08:14)

• Fadel, a southern Lebanese man, recalls the devastation of an Israeli airstrike that killed most of his family just minutes before a ceasefire. He describes desperate attempts to save his grandson and the trauma endured:

  "My eight year old grandson needs therapy. You look at him and he’s completely not there...He doesn’t know what to do. They are all alone now." (Fadel, 07:43)

• Yasmin notes,

  "He says, 'I have nothing now. I just praise God...we were just innocent civilians and we don't know why they targeted us.'" (Yasmin, 08:14)

• Many remain in the region, clinging to their homes and memories, despite incredible danger:

  “Where are they going to go?...this is your home, this is your land. You cannot leave even if you are scared. This is where we belong.” (Unnamed Mother, 09:24)

• The trauma to children is particularly acute:

  "Whenever they hear a plane, they [say] mom, the plane is coming to destroy our toys." (Unnamed Mother, 09:24)

Who Provides Support? (09:49–11:06)

• relief comes from a mix of Hezbollah, the Lebanese government, aid groups, and family.
• Yasmin explains Hezbollah's popularity in certain communities often comes from their capacity to provide services otherwise lacking:

  "Groups like Hezbollah...ingratiate themselves in these communities...able to provide resources that maybe governmental organizations aren’t necessarily able to do all the time." (Yasmin, 10:27)

Buffer Zone and Peace Talk Stakes

The Buffer Zone Issue (11:19–12:16)

• Israel has instructed evacuation from the “buffer zone” south of Tyre, maintaining military presence for stated security reasons.
• The buffer zone is a “no man’s land,” and incursions can be fatal. Tensions remain high even during ceasefires.
• For Lebanese civilians, reclaiming land is the central issue:

  "Every Lebanese person I've spoken to has said this is going to come down to the land, and it's the land that they want, their land that they want back." (Yasmin, repeated from intro and again at 12:15)

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Main Negotiation Points and Regional Implications

Israeli & Lebanese Demands (14:44–17:00)

• With NBC’s Matt Bradley joining from Tel Aviv, the complexity of negotiations is distilled into two fronts:
  • Long-term: Possible normalization of relations—a historic first.
  • Short-term: Stopping hostilities, Israeli withdrawal, disarmament of Hezbollah, and return of prisoners.
• Lebanese officials are uncompromising against the prospect of an indefinite Israeli-controlled buffer zone:

  "It’s a no go for the Lebanese government for two reasons. One, because they believe it is rightfully their land. Two, [they believe] it would be incredibly unpopular with the electorate." (Yasmin, 16:00)

• The Lebanese government appears more "on board" with normalization than the general population, with many definitions of what normalization could mean:

  "If normalisation means we’re not at war every day...the Lebanese government is very much on board...[but] travel, trade...I think that is a bigger question." (Yasmin, 17:00)

Hezbollah’s Position and Shifting Dynamics (17:45–20:56)

• Hezbollah remains opposed to normalization and to laying down arms but is invested in the ceasefire—provided Israel pulls back.
• The Lebanese government is increasingly seen as willing and able to curb Hezbollah’s power, representing a dramatic shift:

  "We're now seeing the Lebanese government itself...emerging [as] a force to constrain Hezbollah. It used to be that Hezbollah was the one that constrained the Lebanese government." (Matt Bradley, 18:40)

• Popular fatigue with war may be fueling a government willing to challenge Hezbollah’s arms:

  “I think it’s representative in what I’ve been hearing from people... that are honestly just exhausted by war.” (Yasmin, 19:05)

• Israel is looking for Lebanese government enforcement of any disarmament clauses, seeing the government's weakness—not unwillingness—as the main barrier:

  "They really believe that this is a moment when the Lebanese people and Lebanese government are resolutely turning against Hezbollah..." (Matt Bradley, 19:50) "People like...Nabih Berri...from the Amal Party, are also turning against [Hezbollah]. So as far as the Israelis are concerned, this is a real opportunity." (Matt, 20:32)

Regional Spillover: Impact on US-Iran Talks (20:56–22:54)

• Delayed US-Iran negotiations in Islamabad are linked to the state of the Lebanon-Israel ceasefire.
• The Lebanon talks could have limited direct effect, unless the ceasefire collapses, in which case "the whole ceasefire across the entire region" could unravel (Matt Bradley, 21:50).
• Yasmin further cautions that only high-level negotiations could truly end the war, and reiterates Iran’s vital interest as Hezbollah’s patron:

  "...If Hezbollah is fighting Israel, then Iran could feasibly then launch on again the United States and/or vice versa." (Yasmin, 22:28)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "It felt as if an earthquake started to shake the ground...I can die now because my grandson has lived."
  – Fadel, recounting surviving the airstrike and the loss of his family (04:50–08:14)
• "Whenever they hear a plane...the plane is coming to destroy our toys."
  – Unnamed mother on children's trauma (09:24)
• "Every Lebanese person I've spoken to has said this is going to come down to the land, and it's the land that they want, their land that they want back."
  – Yasmin Vossoughian (Intro & 12:15)
• "Groups like Hezbollah...that is how they gain also the support that they do in a lot of these communities...they're able to provide resources that maybe governmental organizations aren't necessarily able to do all the time."
  – Yasmin Vossoughian (10:27)

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Key Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-----------|---------------------------------------| | 00:12–02:07 | Introduction, stakes, and context | | 02:07–04:39 | Yasmin’s journey to southern Lebanon | | 04:50–08:14 | Civilian stories: Fadel’s account | | 08:50–09:40 | Civilians’ calculus on staying/leaving| | 09:49–11:06 | Who is providing aid and services | | 11:19–12:16 | Buffer zone tensions and civilian impact | | 14:44–17:00 | Negotiation demands from both sides | | 17:45–20:56 | Hezbollah's stance, government shifts | | 20:56–22:54 | US-Iran negotiations and regional spillover |

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Conclusion

This episode of "Here's the Scoop" delivers a rich, ground-level account of the escalating tension and hope in southern Lebanon ahead of rare, high-level talks. Through personal stories, in-depth analysis, and expert commentary, listeners gain a nuanced view of:

• The human cost of war
• The deeply emotional and political stakes for both Lebanese and Israelis
• Hezbollah and Iran’s outsized influence
• The fragility of current ceasefires and the possibilities—and limits—of peace negotiations

Listeners walk away understanding that even if the scheduled talks are only a symbolic start, the issues of territory, security, and the prospect for normalization are as immediate as ever for ordinary families on both sides of the border.

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For full context and more nuance, tune in to the episode for personal testimonies and expert insights directly from those on the ground.

Transcript

[Yasmin Vasugian]

Every Lebanese person I've spoken to has said this is going to come down to the land, and it's the land that they want, their land that they want back.

[Christine Romans]

Hey, everybody, and welcome to here's the Scoop from NBC News. I'm Christine Romans filling in for Yasmin Vasugian. Today on the show, the stakes are high for people in southern Lebanon heading into tomorrow's scheduled peace talks between Lebanon and Israel in Washington, D.C. it's only the second time representatives from those countries have met in decades. And Hezbollah, the Iran proxy fighting Israel in the region won't be at the table, but the outcome could still be crucial, including for the ongoing negotiations between the US And Iran. And so we're breaking format a bit today to first understand how this war has already impacted the folks directly caught in the crossfire, the challenges they're facing and what each side is hoping to get out of these talks. So first we're going to southern Lebanon, where Israel and Hezbollah have continued to trade strikes on Wednesday despite that ceasefire. We've been talking to NBC News correspondent and your regular here's the Scoop host Yasmin Vasugian. All week, she spent the day in southern Lebanon. Hey, Yaz, how are you?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

Hi. I'm really tired.

[Christine Romans]

I can imagine. I know you've done a lot of work today. Let's set up the stakes here. Since the war began, Israel has been carrying out an intense bomb and ground invasion of southern Lebanon, displacing more than a million people. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he wants to establish this security zone, Right, that Israel would retain control of after the war ends. He claims it's for the safety of the Israeli people from attacks from Hezbollah inside Lebanon. As you told us yesterday, the Lebanese people that you're talking to in Beirut are adamantly against this idea. Today you are in southern Lebanon to see right there on the cusp of that zone. First, let's talk about travel inside of Lebanon. Right now. It's not eas. What was the journey like from Beirut?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

So you're right, it's not easy. And we are the first NBC News crew to make it to southern Lebanon since this war began. We left early this morning around 8am and as you make your way further and further away from Beirut, further and further south, you can kind of start to see the conservative nature of the country begin to creep more and more into the advertisements that you're seeing on the side of the roads. The big crossing that begins to introduce you to southern Lebanon, really the artery that Connects both the north and the south to Lebanon is the Qassimiyeh Bridge. Now, this has kind of become an infamous bridge because this bridge was bombed by Israel during this war. One of the reasons why it was bombed, it's because it's the artery connecting the north to the south. Because a lot of supplies and resupplies for Hezbollah artillery, that kind of thing, or gotten to Hezbollah, are transported to Hezbollah over the Casimir Bridge. Since then, they've been able to rebuild half of the bridge. So we were able to transport over the bridge. The devastation to this area, to the bridge, was incredible to see. Once you cross over the bridge is when you're about 20km or so north of Tyre, which is the city we were heading to. And as you got closer and closer to Tyre, which again is a Hezbollah stronghold, you would begin to see these yellow flags interspersed with Lebanese flags. The yellow flag represents Hezbollah. And as you get further and further south, you see more and more of these Hezbollah flags. And then as you begin to enter kind of the gates, that is when you begin to see the images and the pictures of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the former Supreme Leader of Iran, who was killed in the very first few days of the war with Iran, and Mujtabwah Khamenei standing him, the current Supreme Leader of Iran. And if you don't know, the reason why we're seeing these images is because Hezbollah is a proxy of Iran and therefore they worship the Supreme Leader of Iran. Which speaks to the conversation that we've been having all week, in part, which is, how much influence does Iran have over Hezbollah? Well, if you're looking at those images, you would actually assume a lot. I'll say one more thing. Not everybody in Tyre, for instance, is a believer in the ideology of Hezbollah. A follower of Hezbollah. It just happens to be a Hezbollah stronghold. There are a lot of civilians there. There are a lot of people that just want to live in peace.

[Christine Romans]

I understand you spoke with a man there whose entire family essentially was hit by an Israeli airstrike. Right. Tell me what, what did he say to you?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

This was a really emotional conversation. About three minutes before the ceasefire went into effect between Israel and Lebanon, Fadel was sitting in his apartment on his bed alongside his grandson, his 8 year old grandson. In the room next to him was his wife, his daughter, her two other children. And as he sat on this bed, he was stroking his grandson's hair head, you know, trying to get him to go to sleep. And he said to me, it felt as if an earthquake started to shake the ground. And he told me it was so severe that the ceiling started to fall on top of him. And at that point he told me that his grandson started to slip away from him, was kind of sliding away as if the ground was on like a slope. And he grabbed onto his grandson and held on to him for dear life. And at that point the entire building collapsed on top of this. And when the shaking stopped and the rumbling stopped and the collapsing stopped, everything was still. He started to hear ambulance and sirens coming towards the area in which he was trapped. And he talks about how they dug him out and one by one, little by little, they would ask him to move forward. He couldn't move forward. He said his entire body was aching, he could not move anything. And finally they were able to open up enough of an area in which they could slide his eight year old grandson through. And for four more hours after that, he thought to himself, I can die now because my grandson has lived. And after four hours he was pulled from the rubble. That's when he finds out that five family members that he was with moments ago had perished and were gone forever. And he tells me about how his grandson is in so much pain right now, having lost his, almost his entire family.

[Fadel]

My eight year old grandson needs therapy. You look at him and he's completely not there. Sometimes he cries, sometimes he smiles. He doesn't know how to act. He has lost control. He lost everyone. His mother, his brother, his sister. He doesn't know what to do. They are all alone now.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

And being with Fadel and hearing his story, he's now literally sleeping on a cot on top of his brother's coffee shop. He says, I have nothing now. I just praise God as he tells me my family is gone and we were just innocent civilians and we don't know why they targeted us. This is what he told me.

[Christine Romans]

He's still there. This bombing has been going on for weeks. Yaz, I'm wondering, some people have left, some have fled and gone north, some have stayed. What's the calculus families are making?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

It's their home, these are their memories. Where are they going to go? I mean, there's tent cities set up here in Beirut and they are living essentially in, they're living inside four walls, many of them. I met this other woman today, the mother of two young girls. She survived the strike on her home and she says she tells her daughter every day, this is your home, this is your land. You cannot leave even if you are scared. This is where we belong.

[Unnamed Mother]

Whenever they hear a plane, they mom, the plane is coming to destroy our toys.

[Fadel]

I tried to comfort them.

[Unnamed Mother]

I would tell them, if we leave, we are handing our home over to Israelis.

[Christine Romans]

Yasmin, who's helping people now? Is it the Lebanese government, aid groups? Is it friends? Is it family? Is it Hezbollah?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

It's all of the above. You know, Hezbollah is a on the as a terrorist organization outside of Lebanon, but is has seats in parliament here in the Lebanese government and also has a military arm, which is the arm of the group that carries out the attacks that they do. But Hezbollah does help in these situations, the people in these areas, as does the Lebanese government, as do friends, as do family members. And, you know, groups like Hezbollah, that is how they gain also the support that they do in a lot of these communities, because oftentimes in these kind of smaller communities where they have more of a leadership presence, they're able to provide, as we saw in Gaza as well, they're able to provide some of the resources that maybe governmental organizations aren't necessarily able to do all the time. I'm not trying to discount anything that Hezbollah carries out or any of these organizations, these horrendous acts that these organizations carry out. I'm just trying to explain how it is that they ingratiate themselves in these communities.

[Christine Romans]

And these talks happening tomorrow, Hezbollah not at the table. But it is remarkable to have Israel and Lebanon talking to each other directly. I mean, that is rare and remarkable.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

Super. Yeah.

[Christine Romans]

One of the big points of contention here, one of the big points of negotiation, rather, is that Israel controls this buffer zone south of Tyre, where you've just been. Essentially, this is a no man's land right now. Right.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

They have asked everybody south of the buffer zone or in the buffer zone to evacuate that area. People that kind of enter the buffer zone are certainly under risk of confronting or being confronted by the Israeli Defense Forces. There's been rocket fire inside the buffer zone even today. There have been incidents with journalists today, Lebanese journalists who were caught inside the buffer zone surrounded by the idf. So there is continued fighting inside the buffer zone, and it is going to be one of the biggest points of contention, especially going into these talks tomorrow, because every Lebanese person I've spoken to has said this is going to come down to the land, and it's the land that they want, their land that they want back.

[Christine Romans]

Okay, Yez, we want to talk more about the buffer zone and the negotiations and what both sides want. We're going to bring in our colleague Matt Bradley, who's on the ground on the other side in Tel Aviv. We just need to take a quick break. Okay, Stay right there.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

Yaz, I'm here.

[Christine Romans]

While you're waiting, do us a favor. Everybody hit subscribe wherever you're listening to this podcast. That way you'll never miss an episode. And back in a minute.

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[Unnamed Mother]

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[Christine Romans]

I am over here just, like, winging it.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

Hey, I'm just trying not to screw my own kids up. I'm not giving you advice on how

[Willie Geist]

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[Unnamed Mother]

Search the parent chat on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.

[Christine Romans]

And we're back with. Here's the scoop from NBC News. The fragile ceasefire in the Iran war has been extended and the talks scheduled in Islamabad have been put on hold. While President Trump has said that the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will continue during the indefinite ceasefire, Iran retaliated this morning, attacking three ships they say their Revolutionary Guard seized, too. Meanwhile, as we've talked about, officials from Lebanon and Israel are set to meet at the State Department in D.C. tomorrow. It's the first round of talks between the two sides since a ceasefire went into effect last Friday. And as we've discussed, these talks will be complicated by the fact that Hezbollah conducts its military operations independently from the Lebanese government, but won't be in the room for negotiations. So what are the biggest sticking points? And how likely are we to see anything concrete come out of tomorrow's meeting? Yasmin Vasugyan is still with us from Lebanon. And we're joined by NBC News foreign correspondent Matt Bradley, who's in Tel Aviv. Hi, Matt.

[Matt Bradley]

Hey, how are you?

[Christine Romans]

Great. Look, you've been talking about, I know, to diplomats in the Middle east and the US Ahead of these talks. What are the main sticking points here for Israel right now, I mean, we're

[Matt Bradley]

talking about really two big questions. It's not just the one question. We're talking about both sort of normalization of relations between Israel and Lebanon, which have never had, for example, shared ambassadors or anything like that. And then we're talking about the sort of the more immediate question of this ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel. So a lot of these questions now there are the bigger questions, the more long term questions and the smaller questions. The smaller questions right now have a lot to do with whether or not Israel is going to withdraw, whether or not Hezbollah is going to finally give up its weapons, and where the Lebanese government sits in all this. Whether the Lebanese government is going to be able to step in and push Hezbollah to surrender all of their weapons. That's a really big question going forward for all sides.

[Christine Romans]

You know, Yaz, Israeli leaders have pretty much stood firm so far on maintaining this buffer zone in southern Lebanon. How are Lebanese officials reacting to the prospect of a potentially indefinite Israeli presence in that part of the country? What else are they demanding from Israel?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

They're reacting negatively to it. It's a no go for the Lebanese government for two reasons. One, because they believe it is rightfully their land. Two, believes it would be incredibly unpopular with the electorate here in Lebanon to allow Israel to stay within that buffer zone along with wanting them to withdraw from the buffer zone. They say the aim here is for them to fully stop Israeli attacks on the land tier. The withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon. Absolutely. The release of Lebanese prisoners in Israel as well. Whether or not they have the ability to actually control Hezbollah, I do think is the bigger question as we're talking about the asks of Israel in this negotiating process.

[Christine Romans]

What about that question of normalization that Matt brought up? I mean, the fact that they're talking officially person to person is remarkable. What about the idea of normalizing relations between these two?

[Yasmin Vasugian]

I think the government actually is more on board with quote, unquote, normalization than the people actually are in this country. I also think though there's that people have different definitions of what normalization means. If normalization means we're not at war every single day of our lives for the past how many decades? The majority of the Lebanese government is very much on board with normalization with their relationship with Israel. Now does that mean travel between Lebanon and Israel? Does that mean trade? I think that is a bigger question. But peace and living side by side, The Lebanese government supports that and is trying to, it seems, get that across the finish line. And you can see that by the step that they're taking, that is unprecedented in its nature.

[Christine Romans]

Hey, Matt, after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon was announced, you spoke with a senior Hezbollah official who called the talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials largely symbolic. What have you heard from Hezbollah leaders this week? Are they still dismissive of tomorrow's talks?

[Matt Bradley]

When it comes to normalization, Hezbollah is very, very much opposed. And when it comes to giving up their arms, of course they're. So this is something that we heard recently. When it comes to the ceasefire, they were very, very happy. And they were. They really said that they were totally on board. I talked to multiple leaders. They said they were on board as long as Israel stood by its side of the treaty. And that, to them means eventually withdrawing and for now, at least, not firing on Hezbollah. But, you know, the thing is, things have changed so dramatically for Hezbollah in just the past couple of weeks. We're now seeing the Lebanese government itself, and Yasmin was mentioning this as an emerging force to constrain Hezbollah. It used to be that Hezbollah was the one that constrained the Lebanese government. And now we've had a total shift, both in terms of the way the government is standing. And as Yasmin said, maybe the people aren't really there quite yet, but it looks as though there is a big momentum that we haven't seen before in Lebanon toward finally disarming Hezbollah.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

I think that's actually because of a popular shift. I mean, I think it's representative in what I've been hearing from people all around the country that are honestly just exhausted by war. And I think the Lebanese government is actually catching onto that. I mean, don't forget, they've had a lot of major economic pitfalls in this country. And so they recognize they could either isolate themselves and be controlled by Hezbollah. This is a Lebanese government talking, of course, or they could try and control Hezbollah.

[Christine Romans]

Hezbollah sits in parliament in Lebanon, but has less representation than just a few years ago. But, Matt, I mean, I'm wondering, Hezbollah is not at the table here on these historic talks between Israel and Lebanon. Does Israel really believe that Lebanon can even disarm Hezbollah? I mean, they want. They want Hezbollah disarmed. That's like a. That's almost like a precursor for next steps.

[Matt Bradley]

This is the big thing. And even Hezbollah has basically more or less signed onto an agreement that said that they would disarm below a certain river in southern Lebanon. That is Israeli officials about that. They've said, yeah, we think that the Lebanese government has made an actual genuine effort to try to disarm Hezbollah. They haven't seen it in any way that they would consider satisfactory, but they would attribute that to the weakness of the government, not their unwillingness. As far as I can tell from my conversations with Israeli officials in politics and in the military and security establishment, they really believe that this is a moment when the Lebanese people and Lebanese government are resolutely turning against Hezbollah and that this is the time when use them to disarm Hezbollah. And then now that they're seeing, for example, people like the speaker of Lebanon's parliament, Nabih Barry, has come out in support of disarming Hezbollah. And this is a man from the Amal Party, a Shiite political party that is a partner of Hezbollah. And they are also turning against them. So as far as the Israelis are concerned, this is a real opportunity.

[Christine Romans]

I'm curious to hear from both of you on this next point here. The White House has postponed talks that were gonna be in Islamabad with Iran. Right. Those were scheduled to take place today. How outcome of tomorrow's talks between Lebanon and Israel, I guess maybe guide or affect the next stages of negotiations between the US and Iran? Matt, you go first.

[Matt Bradley]

Well, I mean, they've already played a critical role in terms of making them possible because Pakistan and Iran hung the Lebanon talks and the Lebanon file on top of the broader Iran US So it's already kind of played that critical role. And I think the role that it has left to play, to answer your question directly, is as the opposite. It made these talks so the Lebanon file could break them too. As for any individual changes it could, you know, it could make on the actual negotiations between the US and Iran, I think those would be minor. But if the situation breaks, if the ceasefire breaks over the border between Israel and Lebanon, then we could see the whole ceasefire across the entire region break as well.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

I think Matt is right because I think if there's incremental changes to the ceasefire deal in this meeting tomorrow that is an extension of this ceasefire, I am not optimistic that there could be feasibly a negotiated permanent end to the war, especially considering the parties that are at the table here. I think there would have to be higher level negotiations in order to negotiate a permanent end to the war. Because as many people well know, these were the ambassadors of both Israel and Lebanon to the United States that are meeting in Washington, along with the ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckab. If there's an extension of this ceasefire, I don't think there's really gonna be any effects on the ongoing talks or potential talks between Iran and the United States. As Matt said, I think if there's a break, that could mean also a break when it comes to Iran and the United States because Iran sees Hezbollah as a proxy. If Hezbollah is fighting Israel, then Iran could feasibly then launch on again the United States and or vice versa.

[Christine Romans]

Guys, great conversation. Matt, thanks so much. And Yaz, we'll talk to you tomorrow.

[Yasmin Vasugian]

See you tomorrow.

[Christine Romans]

Coming up, why Los Angeles schools are cutting down on screen time, but kids in Pittsburgh are forced to go remote because of football. Stay with us for the headlines.

[Dylan Dreyer]

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[Matt Bradley]

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[Christine Romans]

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[Willie Geist]

Hey guys, Willie Geist here reminding you to check out the Sunday Sit down podcast. On this week's episode, I get together with Red Hot stand up comedian Nikki Glaser to talk about the long career grind that has brought her to this starring moment hosting the Golden Globes killing at the Tom Brady roast. And now with another hit special on Hulu. You can get our conversation now for free wherever you download your podcasts.

[Christine Romans]

And we're back with here's the scoop from NBC News. Let's get to some headlines. Virginia voters have narrowly approved a Democratic backed redistricting plan that could reshape the fight for control of the house in D.C. with the new map, NBC News projects Democrats could gain as many as four seats in the midterms. Democratic leaders called the vote a response to Republican redistricting efforts in other states, which have been supported by President Donald Trump. Republicans opposed the measure, arguing it undermines the state's bipartisan redistricting system. Legal challenges to the new map are still pending. So the outcome could ultimately be decided in court. The Trump administration is nearing a rare rescue deal for Spirit Airlines as the struggling discount carrier works to emerge from bankruptcy. A person familiar with the matter says the deal could provide up to $500 million in government support, giving the airline added liquidity as it faces higher fuel costs due to the Iran war. President Trump said he would prefer another airline to buy Spirit, but suggested the federal government might step in, citing the airline's roughly 14,000 jobs. But transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned a bailout could mean putting good money after bad and said no final decision has been made. And the NBC source says that after Spirit emerges From bankruptcy, the US government could potentially own up to 90% of the airline. The Southern Poverty Law center says it's being targeted by the Trump administration after the Justice Department brought criminal charges against the civil rights group. Federal prosecutors allege the SPLC committed financial crimes tied to its past use of paid informants inside extremist groups and funneled millions of dollars to quote field sources affiliated with groups including the Ku Klux Klan, the National Socialist Movement and the American Front. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the organization manufactured the extremism it claimed to oppose. The SPLC strongly denies those allegations, calling them false and politically motivated. It says it used informants to gather intelligence and prevent violence. The organization says it plans to vigorously defend itself as the case moves forward. Screens are out, Pen and paper are in again, at least for kids in Los Angeles. After a school board vote Tuesday, Louisiana will become the first major U.S. school district to require limits on student use of laptops and tablets in class and to encourage more pen and paper learning. First graders and under will be kept off devices altogether. The vote came after months of pressure from parents who said heavy screen use was hurting their children's focus and academic performance. District leaders say the changes will take effect in the fall. An NBC News analysis shows that at least 16 states have proposed legislation calling for some sort of restriction on screen time or Internet use in schools. And finally, while LA is saying less screen time in Pittsburgh, kids are being asked to do more online. And it's all because of football. Here's the thing. The NFL draft is in town and hundreds of thousands of visitors are expected in downtown Pittsburgh, more than doubling the city's population. So school leaders decided that instead of adding to the chaos, the 19,000 plus public school students would learn remotely for the next few days, even if it disrupts testing schedules and daily routines. Last year, when the draft was in Green Bay, Wisconsin, schools shut down completely. And that shows just how serious they are about football. That's going to do it for us at here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Christine Romans filling in for Yasmin Vasugian. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring. If you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can also subscribe to our daily newsletter, the Inside Scoop. It's a deeper dive on the main stories of the day that comes out every weeknight straight to your inbox. You can sign up for the Inside Scoop as part of our paid [e-mail].

[Adriana Brock]

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